Page 24 of Love on the Sidelines

"There's something different about you," Paul says, studying my face.

“Just the realization that my life can’t be all about work. You know how to do the job, and I need to let you do it.”

“Are you sure that's all it is?" he asks. “No dates or anything lately?"

Dates have been few. But Ava is someone I think about almost as much as work, which is saying something.

Am I ready to say anything? No. I'm a grown man. I can't admit I've got a crush on my niece's coach, can I?

"Yeah, not much has changed. I'll be going back east again starting Wednesday and I'll be there for about eight days. Only call me if it's something you absolutely can't figure out on your own.”

There. That wasn't so hard.

It might be later, but if I have something to do, I won't feel like I'm not fulfilled by all the little things.

Paul heads off to talk to a few other people and I pull out my phone, pulling up a text to Ava.

Me: Are you feeling better?

There's no answer for a bit, but she's probably at work, wrangling Stu again. The woman is a wonder with children. Would she be able to help with some of the outreach stuff for the Utah Yetis? Would she even want to do something like that?

That's another part I've had to delegate. I don't know grown-up Ava well enough to go to bat for her in the organization I'm the owner of.

Why do I feel such a need to help her? Maybe because of all she's done so far to help Emily. The girl was grinning from ear to ear when we got home last night. It's not the easiest thing to have her mother gone, but this team is helping her ease into life again. And that’s all an uncle can hope for.

But it’s more than just taking my niece under her wing. Ava speaks her mind and stands up for what she thinks is right. I’ve met plenty of people in my line of work who’ve sold out over money or fame, losing themselves in the process.

I have a feeling Ava could withstand that, which makes me like her even more. And as much as I like challenges, she’s definitely keeping me on my toes.

She had several walls up when we first reconnected. How do I test out a relationship with her without getting cut off completely?

13

AVA

Another weekend, another tournament. This time it's for longer than just a couple of days.

Some girls have qualified for an elite camp and then we'll be in one tournament a few days before heading to another tournament right after that. It made sense to book both of them because they’re back-to-back in the same location, which means we only need to book one set of flights rather than two.

I'm feeling so much better this week and I'm hoping that will help my coaching abilities. Being off last weekend led to a few mistakes. I know I'm only human, but sometimes I think I should be past all that, especially since I'm not playing.

We're in the airport, trying to get everyone checked in, and it’s pure chaos. We have a few parents attending this leg of the tournament, which helps keep the girls in line. Sometimes it’s like herding cats with how distracted they get with their phones and each other.

It takes almost forty-five minutes to get everything squared away at the check-in desks. It’s a good thing we told the girls to be early.

Then it’s the battle for the security line. I’m jealous when I see Charlie and Emily go through the pre-check lines. I’ve always thought that might be a good investment with how often we fly in the summer. Finding time and the money to fill out the paperwork is the real issue.

By the time all the bags get through the scanners and special security checks for our equipment, our flight is almost ready to board. At least I’ll have a couple of hours to relax after the anxiety-inducing event at the airport with a gaggle of girls.

“Before we begin our boarding process, we need a few passengers for flight DL2165 to Nashville to volunteer to take a later flight. We’ll get you on the next flight in a few hours and are offering a travel voucher for any future Delta flight.”

I glance down to see that’s the number of our flight. That means there will be no extra seats to stretch out. There’s no way I’m going to be taking the voucher, even though it would be nice to have money toward future flights.

We’ve got a full schedule and I need to prep the girls who are attending the elite camp tomorrow.

In need of a drink, I head over to the drinking fountain and fill up my water bottle. It’s not as refreshing as the water I had to dump out when we arrived, but it’s free and will get me through the flight.

Walking around and checking out a bookstore, I debate whether I should buy a book. I love the idea of reading, but there’s usually a lot going on that disrupts any good book I’m trying to finish.

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